Austrian Airlines Flight from Tel Aviv Diverted to Bulgaria After Bomb Threat
The flight, en route to Vienna, landed safely in Sofia where authorities investigated the threat.
An Austrian Airlines flight originating from Tel Aviv was diverted to Sofia, Bulgaria, on Monday evening after the crew reported a bomb threat.
The Airbus A320, operating as flight OS83 with 51 passengers and six crew members, was en route to Vienna when the threat was received while the plane was over Romania. The flight crew alerted authorities, who instructed the plane to land at Sofia Airport, where it arrived safely at 8:42 p.m. CEST.
According to Bulgaria's Ministry of Transport and Communications, an Air Force fighter jet accompanied the aircraft until its landing. A crisis response team was established, and an investigation into the incident has been launched. Passengers were evacuated from the aircraft, and the plane was searched.
Austrian Airlines confirmed the threat necessitated the stopover. "The safety of our passengers and crew is always our top priority," a spokesperson for the airline stated. The airline plans to rebook passengers onto an alternative flight once the aircraft has been cleared.
Data from flight-tracking services indicated the aircraft transmitted a squawk code of 7700, signifying a general emergency, around the time of the incident.
